Tailpiece for stringed musical instruments



Oct. 25, 1932.

w. w. WEHMANN 1,884,434

TAILPIECE FOR STRINGED MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS Filed Feb. 27, 1951 17 .2a IJ7 Inventor ML 75@ /lf/sf/VA/y/v A llame y Patented Get.y 25, 1932WALTER W. WEHMANN, F BROOKLYN, NEW YORK TAILPIECE FOR strains-nnMessiani; INSTRUMENTS Application filed February 2'?, 1931. Serial No.518,353.

; This inventionrelates to new and useful improvements in musicalinstruments, and more particularly it pertains to a new and improvedtail piecefor stringed musical instruments.

It is one of the objects of the present invention to provide novel meansfor yieldinglyattaching one end of the strings of musiv cal' instrumentto the body of the instrument. I0 A further object of the inventionresides in the provision of a novel construction whereby all mechanicalvibrations will be absorbed, thus producing musical notes of a hightonal quality.

I5 It is a still further object of the invention, so to construct thetail piece that the tension of the yielding connection of the severalstrings may be adjusted to suit various sizes of strings.

It is a still further object of the invention so to construct thedevice, that the several string attaching devices may be renewed orreplaced as occasion may require.

Other objects of the invention relate to 5 certain novel and improvedconstructions and combinations of parts hereinafter described andparticularly pointed out in the claims, the advantages of which will bereadily understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art.

The invention will be clearly understood from the accompanying drawingillustrat- -ing the invention in its preferred form, and

- the following detailed description of the constructions therein shown.

In the drawing;

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a violin showing the instrumentequipped with a tail piece constructed in accordance with the presentinvention,

Figure 2is a top plan view on an enlarged scale of a tail piececonstructed in accordance with the present invention,

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view thereof,

Figure 4 is a View in end elevation illustrating the forward end of thetail piece, and; A

Figure 5 is a detail longitudinal sectional 59 view of one of the stringattaching means.

A tail piece constructed in accordance with the present inventioncomprises a main body portion 10 having a rearwardly extending reducedportion 11 provided with suitable means for attachment to the instrumentthe means being herein illustrated as a gut string or the like 12. Themain body portion 10 is provided with a plurality of recesses 18 whichextend longitudinally of the body portion from the forward end lllthereof. Secured means of screws or the like 15, there is a plate 16 andas best illustrated in Figures 2 and 3, this plate 16 closes the forwardends of the recesses 13.

The means for attaching the strings of the 6i' instrument to the tailpiece consists of a ilunger or the like 17 of which there is one mountedin each of the recesses 13. The plungers 17 each carry a head or thelike 18 which is provided with an opening 19 for 70 the reception of thestring 2O the string being .iounted as at 21 to form the means ofattachment. of the string to the head k18. The head 18 is preferablyformed of some sound deadening material such as hard rubber, or othersuitable composition and is, as illustrated in Figure 5 molded directlyon the forward end of the plunger 17 the latter being provid-ed withribs or ridges such as 22 to form an anchor for the head 18.

Surrounding each plunger 17, there is a coil spring 24 and the rear endof this coil spring 24 engages a washery 25 which is formed of softmaterial such as rubber, felt or the like`l and said washer 25 is backedup 85 by arnut 26 which has threaded engagement with the screw threadedend 27 of the Vplunger 1x.

The spring 24- in each instance is adapted to be placed undercompression between the closing plate 16 and the nut 26 of itsrespective plunger and by this means the tension to which the springsare set may be Varied at will merely by an adjustment of the nut 26.

Thus it will be apparent that as the springs are placed under tension inthe tuning thereof, the springs 24 of the several strings will likewisebe placed under tension.

By reason of the fact that the head 1S, the tail piece 10,'and theclosing plate 16, are 100 made of hard rubber, and that no metallicparts are used in the construction of thetail piece except the plungerand the spring and the spring compressing nut, metallic vibrations arepractically eliminated since the spring abuts at one end the closingplate 16 and at its other end the soft washer 25.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present inventionprovides a tall piece for stringed musical instruments in which thetonal quality of the instrument is greatly enhanced and while theinvention has been herein illustrated in a preferred form, it is to beunderstood that the invention is not to be limited to the specificconstruction shown, and that it may be practiced in other forms withoutdeparting from the spirit thereof.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and what itis desired to secure by United States Letters-Patent, is:

1. A tail piece for stringed musical instruments comprising a main bodyportion having a plurality of recesses, a plunger slidably mounted ineach of said recesses, a coil spring surrounding each plunger, andresisting the reciprocating movement of its respective plunder, andmeans for attachment of a string to cach plunger.

2. A tail piece for stringed musical instruments comprising a main bodyportion having a plurality of recesses, a plunger mounted for reciprocalmovement in each recess, and a coil spring surrounding each plunger,each coil spring being compressible between one end of its Arespectiveplunger and an end wall of its respective recess upon movement of theplunger in one direction in the recess.

3. A tail piece for stringed musical instruments comprising a main bodyportion having a plurality of recesses therein, an end plate for closingsaid recesses, a plunger mounted in each of said recesses and eachmovable through said end plate, and a coil spring within each recess andabutting said plunger, and one end wall of its respective recess adaptedto be placed under tension by movement of each plunger through the endplate.

4. A tail piece for stringed musical instruments comprising a main bodyportion having a plurality of longitudinally extending recesses, a platefor closing one end of each of said recesses, a headed plunger slidablymounted in each of said recesses, a coil spring surrounding each of saidplungers and compressible between the head of the plunger and said plateand string attaching means carried by each of said plungers.

5. A tail piece for stringed musical instruments comprising a main bodyportion having a plurality of recesses extending longitudinally thereoffrom the forward end of the tail piece, a plate for closing the openends of said recesses, a plunger slidabl7 Y mounted in each of saidrecesses and having one end extended through said plate, an adjustablehead upon the inner end of each plunger, a coil spring interposedbetween the head of each plunger and the closing plate, and stringattaching means upon the projecting end of each plunger.

6. A tail piece for stringed instruments comprising a main body portionhaving a plurality of recesses extending longitudinally thereof from theforward end of the tail piece, a plate for closing the open ends of saidrecesses, a plunger mounted in each of said recesses and having one endextended through said plate, an adjustable head upon the inner end ofeach plunger, a coil spring interposed between the head of each plungerland the closing plate, a resilient vibration dampening washer interposedbetween the head of each plunger and the inner end of its respectivecoil spring, and stringl attaching means upon the projecting end of eachplunger.

In testimony whereof WALTER I alix my signature. W. WEHMANN.

